Chile Olive Oil Dinner Preview

Photo via 
http://pinterest.com/chileoliveoil/ 

I was intrigued when Kelsey  tweeted and asked if I'd like to host a Chile Olive Oil tasting dinner. I've enjoyed a lot of tastings. In fact, I've adopted a rather pleasant ritual on most Saturdays of stopping by Pairings Wine & Food to try their weekly lineup of six wines with foods to match. But an olive oil tasting? This is something new!

We use a lot of olive oil in our house. It's my primary cooking oil, I toss it with pasta, and use it as a key ingredient in some of my favorite recipes like pesto. Honestly, I haven't paid a lot of attention to my selection of it in the past. I tend to grab the same extra virgin olive oil at Whole Foods each time I need to re-stock. But I do know quality ingredients can make all the difference in cooking, so the prospect of delving deeper into olive oil sampling sounds great. From what I've learned thus far from the the Chile Olive Oil website and Facebook page, they seem to have a strong commitment to producing pure, flavorful extra virgin olive oils (EVOO).

So the plan is for about a dozen of us to gather at our home later this month for a Chile Olive Oil tasting dinner. We'll taste the oils straight up, and enjoy a three course meal designed to highlight the Chilean EVOO in each preparation. I got to choose recipes from a tasty sounding list to put together our tasting menu, which follows below. The folks at our local Whole Foods in Woburn are helping round up the fresh ingredients I'll need to prepare the meal. Stay tuned to hear how it goes!

Chilean Extra Virgin Olive Oil Tasting Menu

Appetizers

Caprese Salad

Crostini with Pesto and Goat Cheese
Muhamarra Spicy Red Pepper Dip

Main Course

Honey Chicken with Caramelized Onions and Yukon Potatoes
Mixed Green Salad with Chile Olive Oil & Balsamic Dressing

Dessert 

Chocolate Cake

(Kelsey found a good eggless recipe my son with allergies can try!)

Now, we'll be focusing on olive oil tasting, but will of course need some wine to serve with this, to! Any ideas on what to serve with this menu? Chilean wines preferred!